


Promises

by helsinkibaby



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Age Difference, Angst, Community: comment_fic, F/M, Hospitals, Rare Pair
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-05
Updated: 2016-10-05
Packaged: 2018-08-19 16:46:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8217568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: Joe sits in the most uncomfortable chair in the world and listens.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Theme: female characters   
> Prompt: The Flash, Caitlin Snow/Joe West, Joe knows Caitlin is always right. She's never been wrong about much.   
> http://comment-fic.livejournal.com/757387.html?thread=99772811#t99772811

Joe sits in the world's most uncomfortable chair and concentrates on all the noises he can hear. 

Footsteps walking by the closed door. 

The steady beep of a heart monitor. 

The hiss and whir and shushing of all the other machines doing jobs he didn't even want to know about. 

Iris's breathing. 

That one most of all. 

He's so intent on concentrating on her breathing that the snick of the door opening takes him by surprise. He tries to turn quickly but stiffness gets the better of him - how long, he thinks, has he been sitting here? 

"Don't get up." It's Caitlin's voice in a low whisper and she closes the door firmly behind her, crosses the room in a couple of quick strides and kneels by his chair. Her hand closes over his arm and her eyes are huge when they meet his. 

"Should you-" Family only, that's what they'd told him, and even then only one at a time. He's letting Barry and Wally take turns at being here when he needs to leave, but even then, he only leaves when he absolutely has to. There is nowhere else in the world he wants to be right now. 

Caitlin lifts her hand from his arm to wave it dismissively. He misses the warmth of her touch immediately. "I spoke to the doctors," she says. "Practically gave them my résumé." She blinks. "Well, when I say practically, I mean I actually did." He wants to laugh but what comes out is more like a sob. She bites her lip, lays her hand back on his arm and slides it up towards his shoulder. Her other hand reaches out and covers one of his. "It's going to be ok, Joe." 

He shakes his head because no doctor in the hospital, and he's seen them all this week, can promise that. "You don't know-"

"I know Iris." Caitlin's voice is strong, fierce. "I know she's a fighter. She'll make it." 

Tears flood Joe's eyes and Caitlin stands up, coming around to stand in front of him and then, with one more glance at the door, she sits down on his knee. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulls his head down onto her chest and all Joe can do is close his eyes and breathe in the scent of her. It's been so long since he held her and he hadn't realised until just now how much he'd come to rely on those few stolen moments to get him through the day. 

"I can't lose her, Caitlin," he whispers, allowing the tears to fall. "I can't lose my baby girl."

"You won't." Caitlin's fingers run through his hair, steady even when her voice shakes. "I promise you won't," she says again and Joe thinks back to all the times he's heard her give her medical opinion, all the times she's treated their friends, all the times he's heard her be absolutely right. 

He's never wanted her to be right more in his life than he does right now. Never wanted to believe her more than he does right now. 

But even he knows that this is a promise that she might not get to keep.


End file.
